Physically, DeRozan and Green are almost identical. Both stand at 6í7″, 200 pounds, give or take a few. With 6í9″ wingspans and similarly impressive athletic ability, there is no glaring advantage going one way or the other. And itís surely not a question of talent. Itís never a question of talent. Talent is the most visible commodity one owns, especially for those that highly regarded in high school, college, and through the NBA draft process. DeRozan and Green both had the opportunity to make an impact on the league. But if thatís the case, then why is it that one is transforming into an efficient offensive weapon in the NBA, and the other is putting up inefficient numbers for a middling Russian team?

good article. Gerald green does not have anything outside of athleticism which is why he is no longer around. Demar is developing a nice jumper and has become a much more complete player as the season has gone on.

Gerald Green's wiki page says his vert is a ridiculous 48 inches, but Chad Ford's draft combine results say its more around a 39 inch vertical leap. DD has about a 38-ish vertical leap. So yeah, its pretty close. I think DeMar is stronger though.

But GG is one dumb-ass player. You can only get so far on pure athletic ability. At some point, you're gonna have to start using your head.

I remember around when Green was drafted, that he was just so incredibly full of himself. And not even spending that one year in college likely didn't help at all. I still think that hampered McGrady from being all that he could be. Coming straight out of high school requires some pretty exceptional grounding, or else it is something that is going to cost guys in the long run.

there's been a countless number of players who got hype solely based on their athleticism. the difference between the players like green and players who become solid players in the nba is their will to improve and the effort they put in to become a better player

"potential" may get you into the league, but hard work is the only recipe to stay in. that's also what separates good players from great players. look at kobe and lebron- they weren't even close to the players they are right now when they entered the league. it's all about hard work. great players improve every single year

True which is why building a team is so hard. If it was so easy the bottom teams would be good sooner than later. Its not a crystal ball where you see in the future. You've to draft a player that you have no clue how he will turn out and invest years/money into him. Its a gamble.

Fascinating! While most of those dunks are mighty impressive, only a single one of them is him actually creating a play for himself and that's against nothing competition (D-League or summer league competition). Every other dunk is him just running the floor and catching a pass.

I guess Green is the classic "decent stats on a bad team" player because that one year he put up 10ppg he was on a 24 Win 57 Loss Boston team... ouch.